Document Type : Special Articles

Authors

• Hanieh Moshayedi ¹
• Reza Ahrabi ²
• Afshin Mardani ¹
• Saieed Sadigetegad ¹
• Mehdi Farhudi ³

¹ Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Tabriz University of Medical Science, Tabriz, Iran.

² Department of Radiology, School of Medicine, Tabriz University of Medical Science, Tabriz, Iran.

³ Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Neurosciences Research Center, Student Research Committee, Imam Reza Hospital, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.

Abstract

Background: Some studies  in recent  years showed  that carotid  intima-media   thickness  (IMT),  indicator  of  the presence  of atherosclerosis,  was higher  in non-alcoholic fatty  liver disease  (NAFLD)  in comparison  with  normal subjects.  They concluded  that  NAFLD  patients  may  be resulted  in more cardiovascular events. Hence, we aimed to study the association of NAFLD and ischemic stroke.Methods: For this reason, 110 brain magnetic  resonance imaging   confirmed   ischemic  stroke   patients   and   110 patients  age and sex matched  controls went through  liver ultrasound    to   detect    NAFLD    and    common    carotid ultrasound  to measure IMT. Demographic and vascular risk factors were detailed for all subjects.Results: NAFLD was found in 47 (42.7%) of ischemic stroke patients  and 25 (22.7%) of controls. By adjusting  sex and age  in table  2, odds  ratio (OR) for NAFLD was 2.15 (95% con<dence  interval [CI]: 1.25-3.71) that was statistically significant (P = 0.006). However, after adjusting  for other confounding  risk factors  (waist  circumference, hypertension, diabetes  mellitus, low-density lipoprotein, triglyceride, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, creatine, body mass index, cigarette smoking, and ischemic heart disease), the OR decrease  to 1.68 (95% CI: 0.42-6.76) that was not statistically signi<cant (P = 0.460). The OR for IMT of right and left common carotid was 1.23 (95% CI: 0.48-3.15) and  1.24 (95% CI: 0.57-2.69), respectively that none of them were statistically significant.Conclusion: Although  the  risk of occurrence  of ischemic stroke is higher in NAFLD patients, but NAFLD is not associated independently with ischemic stroke.